


the jury's out (but my choice is you)

by bestthreemonths



Series: pdxverse [1]
Category: Women's Soccer RPF
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-11
Updated: 2016-06-11
Packaged: 2018-07-14 12:24:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 17,257
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7170926
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bestthreemonths/pseuds/bestthreemonths
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tobin Heath is grateful to have a best friend like Alex Morgan, who's always down for some friendly competition, but when issues in her personal life make Alex's competitive streak a bit less friendly, Tobin has to step in.</p><p>An apology, a drink, and a phone number from a cute girl later, Tobin finds herself keeping secrets from Alex for the first time since they've met.</p>
            </blockquote>





	the jury's out (but my choice is you)

**Author's Note:**

> This was fun. Enjoy!

Tobin Heath has always considered herself a pretty competitive person. At family game nights, her sisters and brother would dread being on the opposing team from her, and in gym class, she got picked first not because of her athleticism (though she definitely had those skills in her back pocket), but because of her absolute refusal to lose. In pick-up soccer, she refused to ever play to a draw, insisting on extra time or penalty kicks.

She was the most competitive person she know. Before she met Alex Morgan, anyway.

The first time she remembers seeing it was at a company outing at a bowling alley. Most people only go for the booze, but Alex was in it to win it. She and her friends from the employee engagement committee wore homemade tie-dye T-shirts and sweatbands for the sake of cute Instagram pictures, but Alex’s competitiveness was anything but ironic.

Most people were out after a game or two, moving on to Skeeball or Dance Dance Revolution or just drinking, but Alex was growing frustrated with the girl from the marketing division who won every other game, so she wasn’t about to back down, and neither was the other girl, who just happened to be Tobin.

“This is my last round,” Tobin had said at the time, and Alex had rolled her eyes.

“What, you’re just going to give up?”

“We’re the last two people still playing,” Tobin said.

“Best of seven,” Alex challenged.

“Fine,” Tobin said. Alex had won three rounds, and Tobin had won two, but she was new to the company and Alex seemed like she had a lot of pull, so Tobin did the least Tobin thing she’d ever done in her life. She threw the game, letting Alex win.

But at the final frame, Alex didn’t look happy even with a score considerably higher than Tobin’s.

“Good game,” Tobin had said, reaching out to shake her hand, but Alex ignored it.

“You let me win,” she says. “That’s bullshit.”

Tobin protested, but somehow Alex convinced her to stay for one final winner-takes-all, no-holds-barred round. Tobin won, and Alex, despite losing, was much more willing to take the loss (with the promise that there would one day be a rematch) than a win that she didn’t earn.

From that day forward, aside from the occasional office ping-pong or pool game, Tobin and Alex decided they were better off on the same team no matter the occasion, which is why they end up at their favorite bar across the street every week for Wednesday night trivia. They managed to recruit a full team in Ashlyn Harris, Alex’s best work friend and former roommate, and her girlfriend, Ali Krieger, the one who stole Ashlyn away, leaving Alex roommate-less.

Things fell apart just to fall back together, though, and not long after Ashlyn decided to move out, Alex had a chance encounter with an incredibly competitive new girl at work who just so happened to be new to Portland and crashing on a friend’s couch. That generous friend (Kelley O’Hara) also happened to be completely gorgeous, and Alex was head over heels from the moment they met. After a little bit of pining (Alex) and a lot of head games (Kelley), Tobin found herself a constant third or fifth wheel depending on who’s around on a given night out.

She's surprised that someone like Alex would let herself be in a relationship like the one she has with Kelley. They've been hooking up for more than a year, but Kelley refuses to be tied down or labeled the horrifying term “girlfriend.” Still, she spends more nights at Alex and Tobin’s than she does at home, though to be fair, a lot of the other nights are spent with her boss (long story) or random people she meets on nights out.

Tonight is a rare night where they’re back to their original foursome, back before “Kellex” was a thing. Kelley’s working late across town, much to Alex’s chagrin, so Alex has downed just enough alcohol to spite her while keeping her trivia skills sharp. And it’s working, for what it’s worth. They’re up by two points against a group of girls who they’ve never seen before.

“Don’t you hate when non-regulars stumble into our place and try to take over?” Alex grumbles after a cheer erupts from across the room at another right answer, moving the other team up so they’re tied for first. “The Fab Four? Total rookies.”

“We’ve been the Pink Ladies for the past six months thanks to the fact that the first time we came here it was Ali’s birthday and she got to choose,” Ashlyn says dryly.

“Yeah, but the Pink Ladies rule the school!” Ali defends. “School, bar, same difference.”

Alex rolls her eyes, shooting a dirty look at the other table.

“What are the five boroughs in New York City?” the quizmaster asks.

“Oh my God, of all nights for Kelley not to be here!” Alex groans. “Okay, she lived in Brooklyn, then there’s obviously Manhattan.”

“The Bronx!” Tobin adds, scribbling it down.

“I have no clue,” Ali says, but Ashlyn looks to be thinking hard.

“Queens!” she finally comes up with.

“Oh my God, what’s the last one?” Alex groans, mindlessly reaching for her phone to text Kelley. She sees one girl from the Fab Four get up to turn in their answer and rolls her eyes as she looks over. “We cannot let these bitches beat us.”

“Hey, Pink Ladies!” the quizmaster says. “Remember the rule. No phones. Disqualified for this round.”

“Is he serious?” Alex exclaims, putting her phone back into her purse. “I’m texting, not looking up answers!” She catches a glimpse of the smirk on the girl’s face just as Tobin remembers the fifth, not that it matters now. “I’m taking it anyway.” She snatches the paper from Tobin and marches it to the front, turning on her heel to walk back, but not before making a detour to the other girls’ table. “Hey.”

“Hi,” the blonde girl next to the tattletale says. “Do you guys come here a lot? You’re really good.”

Alex ignores her, focusing her attention on the dark-haired girl, who looks increasingly uncomfortable. “Do you have a problem?”

“Wh-what?”

“You told that guy I was on my phone. I wasn’t even writing down answers.”

“It’s just the rules,” the girl says softly. “I didn’t think you were cheating.”

“Okay, well he called me out in front of everyone and disqualified us for a five-point question, so thanks,” Alex says, fuming. She knows in the back of her mind she probably wouldn’t be doing this if she weren’t a little tipsy, stressed from work, and annoyed with Kelley for working late for the second time this week.

“And now you’re making a scene,” one of the other girls says calmly. “It’s just a game.”

“Thanks, Lyss,” the girl at fault says.

“If you must know, I was texting my girlfriend,” Alex says, and the girl turns even redder. “But don’t worry, I wouldn’t expect you to understand. People usually aren’t too keen on dating people with gigantic sticks up their asses!”

The girl’s lip trembles, and Alex feels dizzy. Maybe she’s tipsier than she thought. It doesn’t matter, though, in the end, because the girl gets up and runs to the bathroom.

“Get out of my way,” the blonde girl says, getting up and pushing Alex aside to follow the other girl.

Alex isn’t exactly proud when she walks back to her table, but the other girls don’t say anything, just exchanging concerned glances. There are only two more questions before the final round, and the girl manages to collect herself in time to come back for that one. The disqualification puts the Pink Ladies far enough behind that they can’t come back, and Alex fumes all the way till the end, when Kelley texts her that she’s finally leaving work.

“Let’s go, Tobs,” Alex says, ordering an Uber on her phone. “Kelley’s on her way over to our place.”

“Uh, I think I’m going to stay with these guys,” Tobin says. “You and Kelley have fun, though.”

“Tobin!” Alex whines, but she folds easily, realizing that she’d rather not have Tobin in the apartment anyway. Kelley has three roommates, so finding time to themselves isn’t always the easiest. “Fine. I’ll see you later.”

“I hope she gets laid,” Ashlyn says under her breath. “For your sake.”

“Kelley’s been working a lot,” Tobin says. “She’s just… stressed. But I hope so too.”

“‘Working,’” Ashlyn says knowingly. “I'm sure.”

“What do you think she said to that girl?” Ali asks, risking a glance toward the other table, where all the girls seem to have recovered from their Alex encounter.

“I couldn’t begin to guess,” Ashlyn says, rolling her eyes. “Too competitive for her own good.”

Tobin follows their gaze to the one girl in particular who Alex seemed to have targeted, though she’s sure the other girls were involved in the disqualification as well. She’s laughing at something the smaller brunette across the table is saying, and she doesn’t look like a bitch. She looks nice. And pretty, not that that has anything to do with anything. “I’m going to go apologize,” Tobin says, getting up.

“Tobin!” Ashlyn hisses, but it’s too late to stop her when she gets her mind set on something.

The blonde spots Tobin first, and she sits up straighter, alerting the other girls to her approaching.

“Hey,” Tobin says. “I’m really sorry about my friend. I don’t know what she said to you, but—yeah, I’m just sorry.”

“It’s not your fault,” the dark-haired girl says. Upon closer inspection, her eyes are green against her olive skin, her teeth almost blinding in contrast. “But thank you.”

“I’m Tobin,” she says.

“Christen,” the girl replies. “This is Julie,” she says, gesturing to the blonde. “And Alyssa, and Morgan.”

Tobin laughs, and Christen raises her eyebrows. “Sorry, it’s just funny. Alyssa and Morgan, and my friend’s name is… never mind,” she says, realizing it’s not as funny as she thought.

“Well I appreciate the apology,” Christen says. “I’m not one to hold a grudge. My dad always said holding onto anger is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die.”

“You’re a better person than I am, then,” Tobin laughs.

“She’s a better person than most people,” Morgan adds. “It’s pretty annoying most of the time.”

“Shut up, Moe,” Christen says, rolling her eyes.

“Can I buy you a drink?” Tobin asks, looking straight at Christen. “All of you, I mean.”

“I’m all set,” Alyssa says, smirking. She can see flirting from a mile away, even if the person being flirted with wouldn’t know it in a million years.

“Oh yeah, me too,” Moe agrees.

“I’ll take a mojito,” Julie says before Moe kicks her under the table. “Ow!”

Christen laughs. “I’ll come with you to the bar,” she suggests.

Tobin nods eagerly, but tries too late to play it cool. “So, uh, come here often?” she asks, sticking her hands in her pockets as she follows Christen to the bar, ordering a mojito for Julie and two beers for herself and Christen. “God, that was lame.”

“I don’t, actually,” Christen says. “I just moved here recently, so I’m still trying to find my way around. Julie and her boyfriend opened a gym, and I was looking for a new adventure, so here I am.”

“So what do you, like, do?” The bartender brings their drinks, and Tobin slips her a credit card.

“I teach yoga,” Christen says, sipping her beer. “But I’m kind of an overall wellness counselor. I was doing it in LA for a while, just word of mouth and stuff, but I went through a breakup and then kind of a rough patch with friends and clients and it stopped being rewarding. So when I got the chance to help my friends out and go outside my comfort zone, how could I pass it up?”

“That’s sick,” Tobin says. “A free spirit.”

Christen blushes. “I was kind of running away from some things, though.”

“Whatever it takes,” Tobin says.

“I’m so rude,” Christen realizes. “What do you do?”

“You’re not rude, you’re just way more interesting,” Tobin says. “I do marketing for a tech start-up. Alex—the girl you, uh, met before—and Ashlyn—the blonde on our team—are in sales.”

“And the other girl?”

“Ali, she’s Ashlyn’s girlfriend,” Tobin says. “I’m not even fully sure what she does except it involves a lot of travel and getting paid to take Instagram pictures.”

“Living the dream,” Christen laughs. “Also where do you find all these gay friends? Those three at my table are about as straight as they come.”

“Guess I got lucky,” Tobin says, turning red. “You’ll find this town is pretty diverse.”

“I sure hope so,” Christen murmurs. “Listen, I really hate to do this after you were nice enough to buy me a drink, but I have a class at 7 in the morning, and I’m only just realizing how late it is.”

“No problem,” Tobin says. “The drink is just a drink. To apologize for Alex.”

“No need,” Christen says. “If I had to have that encounter to meet you, I think it’s worth it.”

“Spoken like a true yogi.”

“I’d still like to pick your brain, you know, on Portland things,” Christen says. “Coffee shops, bars, shopping, whatever.”

“Sure, anytime,” Tobin agrees, missing the insinuation.

“So, I mean, if you want to give me your number…” Christen hints.

“Oh!” Tobin exclaims. “Right!”

Christen laughs, handing her phone to Tobin, who types it in quickly, checking three times that she didn’t mess it up. “It was really nice to meet you, Tobin,” she says.

~

Christen doesn't text her till the next morning, but Tobin realizes right off the bat that she's not the type to play games.

“I'm sorry for not texting last night!” says her first text. “This is Christen Press (can't remember if I told you my last name or that my first name is spelled like that… surprise!).”

“Cool, cool,” Tobin responds. “Good meeting you. Have a great yoga class.”

“Thanks!” Christen replies later, presumably when the class is over. “Have a good day at work.”

Tobin doesn't use her phone much at work usually, so she's a little bit surprised when she sees another three texts from Christen in a row.

“By the way, I'm really not good at the whole playing it cool thing, so I wanted to tell you I'm very attracted to you and that's why I wanted your number.”

“Sorry if that comes off forward, I just don't like games.”

“If you were just being nice to the new girl who your friend yelled at in a bar, that's cool too! I could still use friends.”

Tobin grins as she texts Christen back. “I'm attracted to you too. I spent all morning trying to figure out how to casually ask you to coffee without making it seem like too much, but coffee?”

“What are you smiling at?” Alex asks, standing in the doorway of the office Tobin shares with the marketing team.

“Oh it's—nothing, it's nothing,” Tobin says.

“Lunch plans?”

“Um,” Tobin says, looking back at her phone. “None to speak of, you want to do something?”

“Yeah, I need to bitch.”

Tobin laughs. “Naturally.”

It's not that their relationship is one-sided. On the contrary, Alex is one of the most caring and selfless people Tobin knows, but they deal with their issues in completely opposite ways. Alex needs to vent and overanalyze from every angle while Tobin tends to repress and internalize things that bother her so she can work them out on her own with the least possible inconvenience to others.

“I don't get it, you and Kelley seemed perfectly fine this morning,” Tobin says, thinking back to their gross kisses in the kitchen while she tried to enjoy her coffee.

“We’re fine,” Alex says defensively. “Why wouldn't we be fine?”

“Because you've been complaining about her for the past half hour?” Tobin suggests, looking at the time on her phone and ignoring the text from Christen that she’ll look at later.

“I'm not complaining about her,” Alex groans. “I'm complaining about her job. There's a difference.”

“You're complaining about her working late because she's sleeping with her boss.”

“She keeps her late to work to fuck with me,” Alex says. “I can tell because she'd be too tired to have sex if she’d already gotten laid and she’d just go home.”

“Or Kelley is a sex addict,” Tobin laughs. “She probably thinks you're jealous.”

“I'm not jealous, I'm pissed that she's still sleeping with that manipulative psychopath!” Alex exclaims. “Jesus, Tobin, who's blowing up your phone?”

Tobin presses the lock screen again to make it go dark. “Sorry, it's just this girl.”

“Oh?”

“I'll tell you if it actually becomes something you need to know about,” Tobin promises.

“Fine,” Alex sighs. “Have your secret girlfriend, but if you go to meet her somewhere and get kidnapped or murdered, don't call me to save you.”

“I don't think I'll be calling anyone if I get murdered.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Alex says. “You know I support you as long as she doesn't get in the way of our traditions.”

“Like what?”

“Like Taco Tuesday and Wednesday night trivia and Thursday night bowling and Friday night happy hour and Saturday trips to the park and Sunday brunch.”

“So spending every day together.”

“Basically,” Alex says, smirking. “How are you not sick of me?”

“Oh please, I've been sick of you for a year and a half,” Tobin says. “Kelley pays me to live with you so she doesn't have to.”

~

The week gets away from Tobin, and things are crazy at the gym getting ready for the grand opening in a few weeks, so Christen and Tobin don’t get to have their coffee till Sunday morning. Really, Christen invites Tobin to her Sunday morning vinyasa class, but Tobin is sure she’ll embarrass the hell out of herself before they even get to the coffee, so she arranges to meet her afterward.

What she doesn’t anticipate is Alex being awake and in the kitchen at 8 a.m. on a Sunday when she usually doesn’t show her face before 11 a.m.

“Where are you going?” Alex asks from her perch on a barstool.

“Coffee,” Tobin says. “What the hell are you doing up?”

“Kelley woke me up when she got up to go run,” Alex says. “I probably should have gone with her, but I’m so hungover. Give me a sec, I’ll get dressed and come with you.”

“I’m kind of meeting someone,” Tobin says.

“Like a date? Is this the girl you’ve been texting?”

“Yeah.” Tobin runs her hands through her freshly washed hair, avoiding eye contact with Alex.

“How’d you meet? Oh my God, was it Tinder?”

“I deleted that five minutes after you finished my profile,” Tobin says. “Don’t worry about it, this is literally our first… date or whatever. It’s just coffee.”

Alex sighs loudly. “Have fun,” she says, but Tobin’s already halfway out the door. “Don’t get murdered!”

Tobin orders a coffee and sits so it won't look like she was just waiting around for Christen, but it only takes a couple more minutes for Christen to rush in, hair in a ponytail and still wearing the clothes she must wear for yoga.

“I'm sorry for being late!” she exclaims. “I'd like, hug you or something, but I'm disgusting.”

“You aren't,” Tobin assures her. “You look great. What do you want to drink?”

“I'll have an Americano,” Christen says. “Black.” Tobin comes back with it quickly, and Christen smiles graciously. “Thank you,” she says, taking a long sip. “Man, I could have used that at 6 a.m.”

“Probably wouldn't have been good for the whole zen thing, though.”

“No, probably not,” Christen agrees. “You really should come to a class sometime. Doesn't have to be an early one. Doesn't even have to be one of mine.”

“I'd be terrible,” Tobin says. “My roommate does yoga DVDs in the living room sometimes and I'm hilariously awful.”

“Practice makes perfect,” Christen says, a twinkle in her eye. “I'm sorry work was so crazy for you this week. Is this week going to be a little quieter?”

“Hopefully,” Tobin says. “We had some deadlines with a new marketing campaign, so it got a little stressful.”

“You know what's good for stress?”

“Is this some low-key marketing campaign you guys have at the gym? Send pretty girls to bars to recruit members?”

“As if I could have manufactured the situation that brought you over to our table,” Christen laughs. “Did your friend ever end up getting laid?”

“What?” Tobin asks, practically choking on her drink with surprised laughter.

“I know it when I see it,” Christen says. “That's been me for the past… too long, that's not important. If it weren't for yoga and some stress relief tactics, I'd be grumpy too.”

“Tell me about these stress relief tactics,” Tobin teases.

“Mostly mindful meditation and clean eating,” Christen says, smirking. She waits for Tobin to take another sip. “And a little self love.” It has the intended effect, and she laughs when Tobin chokes again. “You're too easy.”

“You're mean.”

“Tell me about you,” Christen says, leaning forward on her elbows. “You've told me all about your job over the past few days, but what about Tobin the person?”

“You mean I'm more than my job?” Tobin jokes. “I grew up in New Jersey, but I always kind of preferred the West Coast, so after college I tried to get over here as soon as I could. It took a few years, but then I got a job here and my friend had a couch to crash on, and it all fell into place.”

“Let me guess, that friend is my biggest fan.”

“No, actually,” Tobin laughs. “The friend whose couch I slept on is Kelley. My new roommate and your best friend is Alex.”

“Who hopefully has kissed and made up with her girlfriend so she no longer wants to kick my ass.”

“She doesn't have a girlfriend, maybe that's her problem,” Tobin says, rolling her eyes.

“Then who was she texting?”

“What?”

“She said she was texting her girlfriend and I wouldn't know anything about that because I have a stick up my ass.”

“Oh my God,” Tobin cringes. “She said that?”

“Yes!” Christen exclaims.

“She said she was texting her girlfriend too?” Christen nods vigorously. “That's rich.”

“Why?”

“She has a thing with my friend Kelley, but they're certainly not girlfriends. Kelley would freak out if she heard that.”

“And here I am having coffee with her cute single friend,” Christen says smugly. “Who has a stick up her ass now?”

“Seriously, though, she's great. You guys obviously got off on the wrong foot, but I think you'd get along if you met again.”

“I'm assuming if you like me enough after coffee I might score an invite to your apartment one of these days, so I sure hope so,” Christen says. 

“Play your cards right and we’ll see,” Tobin says.

“How am I doing so far?”

“Pretty solid,” Tobin confirms. “Doesn't hurt that you're wearing stretchy yoga pants.”

“Noted,” Christen says with a shy giggle. “So as nice and cliche as this is, what's your perfect date?”

“Paris,” Tobin says, wiggling her eyebrows. “I spent a summer there four years ago after graduation, and it was incredible.”

“What did you like about it?”

“God, everything,” Tobin sighs. “There was just so much to do and see, like I spent rainy days in art museums and pretty days in these huge flower gardens just reading or writing or eating crepes or spending time with friends.”

“Friends?”

It's Tobin’s turn to blush. “Okay, girlfriend,” she says. “She stayed when I left. We tried long distance for a few months, but it kind of crashed and burned. And I've been single ever since.”

“Do you ever wish you'd stayed?”

“No,” Tobin says. “I've thought about it, but I wouldn't go back and do anything differently. Paris was a dream, but I had to wake up at some point. Nobody ever wants to wake up from a good dream, but you can't make a life there.”

“I've never thought of it that way,” Christen says.

“I'd still love to go back anytime,” Tobin says. “You know, if you're offering to take me on my dream date.”

“Like a wise woman once told me, you better play your cards right,” Christen says with a smirk.

~

The date doesn't end with a kiss or even a hug (“I’m so gross and sweaty!” Christen insisted), but that doesn't stop Tobin from sending flirty kissy face emojis multiple times a day.

“What are you doing Saturday?” Christen asks on Tuesday. “I feel like there's some rule about not accepting weekend plans after Wednesday.”

“Haha I don't believe in rules,” Tobin says. “I'm free all day, what do you have in mind?”

“A date :)”

“Morning? Afternoon? Night? Hints?”

“No hints,” Christen says. “Meet me at the coffee shop where we went Sunday around 11:30. I'll take care of the rest.”

“You're evil, but I think I like it,” Tobin replies.

When Saturday rolls around, Tobin’s a little less sure she likes it. Christen has basically dropped off the face of the earth, so Tobin is flying blind when it comes to picking an outfit and preparing herself for the day. She'd usually ask Alex, but she's annoyed that Tobin is ditching their plans to sit around the house all day for someone she still hasn't even met (or so she thinks), so Tobin goes with a foolproof jeans-and-flannel combination, opting for boots over sandals because the weather is still unpredictable in late April.

When she gets to the coffee shop, Christen is sitting out front wearing a floppy hat, sunglasses, and a slightly dressier top with skinny jeans and sandals. She has two coffees in front of her, one containing Tobin’s order.

“Observant,” Tobin says, taking a sip. It's still hot.

“Ready?” Christen asks, grabbing her keys from the table.

Tobin feels weird getting in her car, though she's not sure why. It's a white Mazda that just… fits Christen, she thinks.

“So, flights to Paris were a little steep for just the weekend,” Christen says as she pulls into the parking lot at one of Tobin’s favorite parks. “But I thought we could pretend we’re in Paris.”

She pulls a picnic basket from the backseat and grins, beckoning Tobin to take her hand and follow her. They find a perfect picnic spot, partially in the shade and partially in the sun, and Christen opens the basket to take out a large blanket, spreading it out on the grass.

As she unloads the food, which consists of bread and cheese and jam, all staples of Tobin’s Parisian diet, Tobin is overwhelmed with the urge to kiss her.

“Hey,” Tobin says, capturing Christen’s attention. “Can I kiss you?”

“I thought you'd never ask,” Christen replies, leaning forward. She makes Tobin meet her halfway, and their lips touch with hesitance before committing themselves fully. When she pulls back, she's smiling, her bottom lip between her teeth. “Really, I thought you'd never ask because I just assumed you'd go for it.”

“I'm not that kind of girl,” Tobin says, leaning back in for another. “But now that I've started, I don't know if I can stop.”

“You're cute,” Christen murmurs. “But this isn't all we’re doing, so you better eat up and drink that coffee for energy.”

Christen is hands-down the most interesting person Tobin has ever met, and Tobin thinks she could watch her talk all day, but she's also a masterful conversationalist, never overpowering the discussion with her own stories and always making Tobin feel like her life is the most interesting thing Christen’s ever heard about.

They pack up the basket when they're done, and of course Christen throws all the paper and plastic in the recycling.

“So L.A,” Tobin teases.

“Excuse me for wanting there to be a planet left when I have kids!”

She belongs in Portland. She fits in better than Tobin ever has, even when she walks down the sidewalk looking every bit the supermodel. Tobin smiles proudly when she sees people of all genders gawk at Christen, who would be better suited to a Coppertone ad than a sidewalk, knowing that Tobin is her main focus. At least for the time being.

Of course, her attention shifts when they reach their next destination, the art museum Tobin keeps meaning to visit but never has. Her office has had a couple of networking events and happy hours here, but she's never been into that sort of thing where you have to dress up and impress people by not being yourself.

“I've never been to Paris, and I assume this is nothing like their art museums, but—”

Tobin cuts Christen off with a kiss. “This is awesome.” She can't believe something as simple as someone asking about her perfect first date and actually listening could make her feel so fluttery inside. She insists on paying for their admission, practically arm wrestling Christen and her credit card out of the way.

Once inside, though, Tobin can't keep her eyes off Christen. She gets caught more than once, but Christen always seems more embarrassed, blushing and stumbling over whatever she was saying at the time.

“I have one more thing, but if you’re tired, it can wait for another day.” Christen says when they get through the museum. There’s no way they could see it all in one afternoon while still actually getting to appreciate the art, so they picked and chose a few exhibits, but Tobin catches herself yawning toward the end.

“No way, I can rally,” Tobin says, yawning again. “Sorry, usually I nap on Saturdays. If you get some coffee in me, I’ll be good to go.”

“That’s okay,” Christen laughs. “We’ll just go to my apartment, I have to get things ready, so you can drink coffee or nap while I do. How does that sound?”

“Heavenly,” Tobin admits.

Christen’s apartment is exactly as you might expect if you were to expect anything of Christen, but Tobin has learned in just a few days that she’s full of surprises. She lives in an area of town that looks somewhat run-down, but it’s all by design. In reality, all the apartments are brand new and filled with young couples (like Christen’s roommate, Julie, who technically lives there but spends the majority of her time at her boyfriend’s townhouse, which is closer to the gym) and newcomers to the area (like Christen).

The inside is clean and neat, and it smells like lemon; not the harsh scent of cleaning supplies, but as if Christen were to make freshly squeezed lemonade every morning. Growing up, Tobin had a massive crush on Samantha from Bewitched: the perfect, poised housewife with a naughty side. Judging by the appearance of her home, Christen may just be the real-life embodiment of that childhood ideal.

“Make yourself comfortable,” Christen says, gesturing to the couch in the living room. All her furniture is black and gray, but the accents in the room, like the throw pillows and paintings (actual paintings!) on the wall are bright (but not obnoxious) shades of yellow.

Tobin smells coffee brewing in the kitchen, but instead of waking her up, the smell relaxes her, so much so that she wakes up what must be at least an hour later to a dark room lit only by a small lamp under which Christen reads.

“Hey,” Tobin yawns.

“Hey sleepyhead,” Christen says gently, slipping a bookmark in her book before closing it.

“How to Beat Anyone At Chess?” Tobin asks, her voice rougher than she anticipates. “Good luck beating me.”

“You play?” Christen asks, raising an eyebrow. She had been expecting Tobin to tease her about her nerdy hobby.

“I play everything,” Tobin says. “I kept running out of things to beat my family in when I was growing up.”

“The coffee’s cold, but I can brew some more,” Christen offers. “Dinner is almost done.”

That's when Tobin recognizes the scent of dinner cooking and hears the ticking of a Crockpot, a combination that feels so much like home, Tobin gets a sudden rush of homesickness. “That's okay, the nap took care of it,” Tobin says, sitting up.

“Then maybe a glass of wine?”

“You want me to go right back to sleep?” Tobin laughs. “I'll have water.”

“Suit yourself,” Christen says, but she pours Tobin a glass of water (no ice) alongside her glass of red wine. “I don't care how much it stains my teeth. Nothing else does the trick for me like a Cabernet.”

“Wanna play chess?” Tobin asks, nodding toward the set she sees in the entertainment center beneath the TV.

“Taking advantage of me drinking wine?”

“Hey, I'm just waking up,” Tobin argues. “And you've had two sips. You're way better off.”

“Excuses, excuses,” Christen says. “I'd love to.”

The timer on the Crockpot dings halfway through their game, but they both ignore it in favor of the battle in front of them. In the end, Tobin wins, making Christen grumble as she serves dinner, French dip sandwiches on baguettes.

“I know it's not really French, but it kind of keeps with the theme, right?” Christen asks, smiling with her tongue between her teeth as she sits across from Tobin at the kitchen table.

“You're incredible,” Tobin says, amazed. “Seriously, this is too much. I'm not sure how I could possibly top this.”

“You don't have to, it's not a competition,” Christen says seriously. “I did it because I like you. I wanted to spend time with you, and I like picnics and art and lazy afternoons napping.”

“I like you too,” Tobin says, leaning forward to kiss her. She can taste the wine on her lips, and she's amazed when she remembers that up until a few hours ago, she’d never kissed her before in her life. “I think I'll take you up on that Cabernet now.”

~

If Tobin had it her way, they'd have gone straight from dinner and wine to the couch or, even better, Christen’s bedroom, but of course Christen has to clean up before they can move on to the next activity.

In the end, Tobin is grateful because her wine haze wears off as she's helping dry the dishes, so by the time they're done and Christen wraps her arms around Tobin’s neck for a kiss against the sink, Tobin is in the right frame of mind to keep it from going any further.

“I should go,” Tobin says softly, fighting every impulse in her body that tells her to stay a little bit longer.

“I was afraid you'd say that,” Christen mumbles, kissing her again. “You sure?”

“Don't make me think about it,” Tobin groans.

While Christen slips on her shoes and grabs her keys, Tobin scribbles her name on the whiteboard to-do list on her fridge. Christen comes back and smiles, rolling her eyes.

“To do?” she asks.

“When the time is right, I'd be honored,” Tobin teases, grabbing Christen’s waist for another kiss.

~

When Tobin gets home, Alex and Kelley are already in bed judging by the giggles and squeals she hears when she slips in the door, so she doesn't get to face them for her post-date grilling till Sunday morning at brunch with Ali and Ashlyn, the only people who know the real story behind Christen and Tobin.

“I can't believe you didn't sleep over after she went through all that for you,” Alex says, washing down a bite of her egg-white omelet with a mimosa. “Wine and a homemade dinner? And she's a nerd like you? You should have put out.”

Kelley rolls her eyes. “Ignore her,” she says. “That's really cute. How'd you meet this girl again?”

Ali and Ashlyn exchange a glance, but nobody but Tobin notices.

“Uh, at a bar,” Tobin says. “She just moved to town and she was looking for someone to show her around, so we exchanged numbers.”

“I think she sounds great,” Ali says, smiling warmly.

“There's got to be something wrong with her,” Alex muses.

“Al,” Ashlyn groans, rolling her eyes. “Let Tobin be happy.”

“I am!” Alex exclaims. “I'm very happy for you, Tobs. But I can't sign off completely till I've met her. Plus, you haven't slept with her yet. She could be terrible. Has she even slept with other women before?”

“Curse of the former straight girl,” Kelley says. “She assumes everyone else must be new to it too.”

Ashlyn raises her glass to that, welcoming an elbow to the ribs from Ali. “Ow!”

“Are you saying I was bad at it when we started?” Alex asks, offended.

“No!” Kelley exclaims, nodding dramatically to everyone else.

“Bitch,” Alex mutters.

“If you're volunteering to sleep with her for me, I'm going to pass, but thanks,” Tobin says.

“Um yeah, I veto that too,” Kelley says, sliding a hand over Alex’s thigh.

Tobin rolls her eyes, but Alex eats it up, shifting closer to Kelley in the booth.

It's not like Kelley does it on purpose, leading Alex on like she does, but Tobin has seen her stomp on her fair share of hearts over the years, pure intentions be damned. Her relationship with Kelley predates her relationship with Alex, but she still feels fiercely protective of Alex, who rarely shows her vulnerable underbelly.

Even though Alex would die before she’d admit it out loud, she's in love with Kelley. Even if it wasn't obvious to everyone who's ever spent more than five minutes around the two of them together, Tobin would know. She knew after a vent session about three months after Kelley and Alex started hooking up. Kelley was “working late” for the third time that week after assuring Alex she’d be around for dinner. Alex had turned down all her other friends’ plans, which was mostly notable because it was her birthday.

After two hours of venting in the living room, Tobin had gone to bed and encouraged Alex to do the same, but five minutes after closing her bedroom door, she heard Alex crying in the living room, heaving sobs that left her breathless. When Tobin woke up for work the next morning, Alex was curled up on the couch in the same clothes she had been wearing the night before, makeup streaked down her face.

They never spoke of it afterward, and Alex hasn't cried in front of her over anything since except when the dog dies in Marley & Me, but Tobin knew then that Kelley would break Alex’s heart.

Tobin’s phone dings and everyone groans as she reaches for it, breaking the “no phones at the table” rule. “Yeah, I got it, I got it,” Tobin says, handing over her credit card for everyone’s meal as she opens Christen’s latest text and tries to shield it from prying eyes (Alex’s).

“Hey! Meant to tell you last night (I was a little distracted) but you should come to our grand opening cocktail party Friday night! The public event is Saturday but it'll be crazy so I won't be much fun to hang with. Friday is invite only, so you can bring all your friends, just let me know what names to put on the list.”

“All my friends?” Tobin replies.

“Haha, yes all,” Christen answers moments later. “Free booze, cool prizes, me in a short dress ;)”

“Hmm, guess I better be there to keep an eye out,” Tobin says. “I'll get back to you on those ‘friends.’”

“What's your lover saying?” Kelley teases.

“She's saying that everyone except you is invited to a party Friday night,” Tobin says.

“I have plans anyway,” Kelley says. “But rain check on meeting mystery girl.”

“What are you doing?” Alex asks.

“I have a work thing,” Kelley says. She knows better than to go into specifics, especially in public, especially on a day where so far she's managed not to piss Alex off too much.

“Well I'm in,” Ashlyn says.

“Me too!” Ali agrees.

“Yeah, I'll go,” Alex says, considerably less chipper than she was a moment ago.

“And you'll be nice?” Tobin asks warningly.

“I can't make any promises!”

“I'll take care of her,” Ashlyn says. “She’ll be on her best behavior.”

“Oh please,” Alex laughs. “You're the one who practically broke a dude’s neck for standing too close to Ali.”

“So you're saying you're in love with Tobin,” Ashlyn retorts, and Alex responds with a middle finger and an eye roll.

“I promise I'll be nice to your new friend,” Alex swears, hand up like she's taking an oath. “But in exchange I better get a lot of alcohol.”

~

Alex doesn't actually wait for the party to ensure she has enough alcohol, instead inviting Ali and Ashlyn to a pregame at their apartment.

Ashlyn helps Tobin put together an outfit in her room, talking in hushed voices about Christen while Ali and Ashlyn mix fruity drinks in the kitchen.

“Okay, but what are you going to do when you have to introduce them?” Ashlyn whispers.

“I'm just going to introduce them!” Tobin says. “What are the chances Alex even remembers? She was pretty drunk.”

“She literally had two beers, she was tipsy at worst,” Ashlyn says. “And you know she knows how to hold a grudge.”

“Against everyone but Kelley,” Tobin says. “I wish she could come, that would probably mellow her out.”

“I'm sure she has a vibrator that'll do the trick.”

Tobin gives Ashlyn a pointed look. “Not the point.”

“No, but it can't hurt. Do you want my advice?”

“Not really.”

“Okay, well I'm the only one in a stable and non-toxic relationship, so I'm going to give it to you anyway. When you introduce them, Alex is going to be pissed. She might—and I say might because it's Alex and you never know—not say anything to be polite, but she will. Whatever you do, don't ignore Alex for Christen. Give them equal attention, because that'll make a huge difference for them both.”

“And if I want to go home with Christen?”

“Do you think you will?”

Tobin shrugs, and Ashlyn sighs heavily.

“If you absolutely can't contain yourself, we’ll take care of Alex. But I think your best bet is to come home and make Alex feel like she's not losing something to her. Losing our trivia streak was a big enough deal.”

“It would make my life a lot easier if Kelley would get her head out of her ass,” Tobin groans.

“I think you know you're the only one who could actually get through to her there,” Ashlyn reminds her.

She won't, though. She promised herself and Kelley and Alex when they first got together that she wouldn't meddle, even if it was for the best. Sometimes she regrets it when she can't shake Kelley and tell her to open her eyes and stop hurting Alex, but most of the time she's grateful that the responsibility doesn't lie with her.

Luckily, Alex seems to be in a good mood, as she usually is when she gets free food and alcohol and gets to dress up and take pictures. The gym is within walking distance, but not walking-in-heels distance, so they take an Uber and show up at the party fashionably late so the party's already begun, but not late enough to be rude.

Julie’s boyfriend, an enormous guy who looks like he should play in the NFL, is playing bouncer, holding the list by the door while he chats with Julie and some of the girls who apparently work there.

“Tobin!” Julie cheers when she walks in. “So glad you guys made it!” Her smile falters slightly when she sees Alex, but she plasters it back on as she searches for their VIP wristbands.

“She looks weirdly familiar,” Alex murmurs to Tobin after Julie hands them their champagne flutes and tells them to enjoy the party.

Tobin pretends not to hear her, scanning the crowded main room for Christen.

“Oh my God,” Alex hisses, grabbing her arm. “You'll never guess who's here.”

“Who?” Tobin asks, only half paying attention.

“Oh fuck, she saw me,” Alex mutters. “It's that bitch from trivia, who got us disqualified by telling the guy—”

“You're here!” Christen says, grinning widely as she steps forward to hug Tobin.

“You've got to be fucking kidding me,” Alex says, not bothering to hide her voice.

“Alex,” Tobin says. “This is Christen Press. Christen, this is my best friend, Alex.”

“It's a pleasure to officially meet you,” Christen says, still grinning as she extends her hand to Alex, who just stares at it.

After what feels like thirty awkward seconds, Ashlyn finally reaches out to shake Christen’s hand. “It's so good to meet you,” she says. “I'm Ashlyn, and this is Ali. We've heard nothing but wonderful things from Tobin.”

“Good seeing you both,” Christen says, graciously ignoring Alex. “You look incredible! Red is definitely your color.”

“Isn't it?” Ashlyn agrees, slipping an arm around Ali’s waist.

“And Alex, your shoes are amazing,” Christen gushes, ignoring the awkward introduction with class.

“Thanks,” she says shortly, crossing her arms. Ashlyn was half right. She certainly isn't going to yell at Tobin in front of Christen, but she isn't going to pretend to be happy either. “Is there a bathroom around here?”

“Um, yeah, just down this hall,” Christen says, gesturing to a door.

“Great,” Alex says, starting that way. Tobin grits her teeth and follows till they reach the bathrooms, which are really locker rooms. “What the hell, Tobs?”

“Keep your voice down,” Tobin says.

“Honestly? Is this some kind of joke? Like are you playing a joke on me right now.”

“No,” Tobin says. “I like her, and I wanted you to meet her. I think if you tried you might find you two have a lot in common.”

“I just don't get it! What about someone doing something mean to me—to us!—makes you think ‘wait till Alex is gone then fucking date her!’”

“It was a game,” Tobin sighs. “And you weren't exactly an angel back to her. You made her cry! I told her that you didn't mean whatever you said and that I was sorry.”

“You have no right to apologize on my behalf, and I did mean it,” Alex says. “Trust me, she is not the girl for you if she's going to be that kind of person.”

“What kind of person? Competitive? Smart? Wants to win? Because I've been best friends with that kind of person for almost two years now.”

“Don't compare us.”

“You don't know her,” Tobin insists. “That's why I wanted you to meet for real, outside of that one interaction. You didn't like Kelley when you first met her!”

“No, I had a crush on Kelley when I first met her,” Alex says. “Your girl is pretty, but not my type.”

“Well she's mine,” Tobin says. “So you could stand to be a little nicer. Because like it or not, she's going to be around. If she isn't scared away by my monster of a roommate.”

“I'm an angel,” Alex protests, smiling slightly. Tobin raises her eyebrows. “I'm not promising anything.”

“I'm not asking you to. Just want to see you try.”

“Fine,” Alex says, holding out her pinky to Tobin. “I'll try. But I swear to God, if she messes with you…”

Tobin rolls her eyes, but smiles. Alex isn't really one to talk, but Tobin appreciates the sentiment nonetheless. “Can we go back to the party now?”

“Yes,” Alex agrees, turning back toward the door. “Actually, I really do have to pee first.”

When Tobin returns to the party, she's pleased to see Christen, Ali, and Ashlyn haven't been too bothered by her lengthy absence.

“Hey!” Christen says when she sees Tobin, probably a bit relieved not to see Alex.

“Hey, let me give you a proper hello,” Tobin says, kissing her quickly on the lips, throwing a middle finger toward Ashlyn when she whistles. “Sorry for that. She might not apologize, but she's sorry too.”

“She definitely won't apologize,” Ashlyn says, rolling her eyes. “She's an acquired taste.”

“You guys seem like good judges of character, so I'll take your word for it,” Christen laughs, cheeks pink from the kiss and probably the drink she's sipping.

“The champagne has been great, but I need a real drink,” Tobin says.

“Right this way,” Christen says, placing a hand on the small of Tobin’s back as she leads her toward the makeshift bar.

Alex finds them over there, and Ashlyn hands her the Cosmopolitan she ordered for her. “Thanks,” she says quietly, taking a sip. “Those are really nice locker rooms,” she tells Christen.

“That's Alex for I'm sorry,” Tobin whispers loudly.

“Shut up,” Alex grumbles, but Christen smiles graciously.

“Thanks!” Christen says. “All the credit goes to JJ, though. Zach has the muscle, but she has the brains and the eye. And the muscle too, honestly. Never take her up on an arm-wrestling challenge.”

“Noted,” Alex says. “How'd you get involved in this whole thing?”

“My degree is in nutrition, and I'm a licensed dietician and yoga instructor, so it was easier to hire me than hire one person to do wellness counseling and another to teach yoga,” Christen says. “But I love it, and I'm definitely learning a lot. Julie’s classes kick my ass, and I can't do more than 20 minutes with Zach.”

“Do you guys have like a friends and family discount?” she asks, looking over a brochure.

“Um, yeah!” Christen says. “I mean, nothing official, but you can definitely try it out. Just let me know when you want to come to a class or work out. And all the trainers do like a free trial. I'd suggest Moe if you're a beginner because she at least tries to make it fun.”

“I'm not a beginner,” Alex says defensively.

“I didn't mean like…”

“I'd love to come to a yoga class,” Ali says, coming to Christen’s rescue. “I've been trying to get Ashlyn to try it for years.”

“I'd love to have you guys,” Christen says. “I have classes nearly every day, but I can email you the calendar, you can sync it to your phones or computers or whatever.”

“Fancy,” Ashlyn says. “But if I have to do a yoga class, I need to see Tobin try too.”

“She's coming tomorrow!” Christen says, setting her hand on Tobin’s arm. “We’re doing open classes for the grand opening, and I'm doing one in the morning and one in the afternoon.”

“The one I come to depends largely on how much alcohol I consume tonight,” Tobin adds.

“Kelley’s done with her plans,” Alex says, rolling her eyes at her phone.

“Okay, tell her to come over,” Tobin says. “That's cool, right?”

“Totally cool!” Christen agrees. “I'd love to meet her.”

“Well, she's not on the list and she's kinda tired, so I think I'm just going to go chill out with her,” Alex says.

“Al,” Tobin groans, shooting her a look. “Don't be rude.”

“We can add her to the list,” Christen says. “I'm sure someone didn't show up and she can take their goody bag.”

“It's really okay, thanks anyway,” Alex says, setting her empty glass on the nearest table. “Have a good time, guys.”

Christen turns to Tobin once she's gone. “She hates me.”

“This time I can honestly tell you that isn't the issue,” Ashlyn says. “I guarantee she didn't want to tell Kelley she could come because Kelley would totally be here in a heartbeat. Alex saw an opportunity for some alone time with her, and she’ll take that every time.”

“Is she seriously that in love with her?” Christen asks.

“Sore subject,” Tobin says. “Never say that in front of her.”

“Geez,” Christen says. “To be honest, I kind of feel like I can breathe a little better now that she's gone.”

“I promise she’ll get over herself and get used to you,” Tobin says. “She hated Ali for stealing Ashlyn away when they were roommates, and now they're like best buds.”

“There's hope for you yet,” Ali says with a bright smile.

Christen doesn't look convinced, but Tobin can't really blame her.

~

“I literally cannot move” is the first thing Tobin texts Christen when she wakes up Sunday morning.

“Haha, I'm not sorry!” Christen replies. “Love the burn. Embrace it.”

“I'm going to embrace my bed all week long,” Tobin says. “I'm going to have to take medical leave.”

“What a baby.”

“You should see me when I'm sick.”

“I don't get sick,” Christen declares. “Thanks yoga!”

“You also eat cleaner than anyone I've ever met.”

“There's that,” Christen says. “I can bring you lunch if you really are too pathetic to move.”

“Yes please :)”

Christen shows up an hour later, after Alex has already left for brunch with the girls, which Tobin bailed on because she literally can't move. She feels bad that Christen’s first time at her apartment is going to be like this, so she tries to clean up a bit before practically collapsing on the couch.

“It's open!” Tobin calls when Christen knocks at the door, carrying Tupperwares of whatever meal prep she has on hand for today.

“Oh, you poor thing,” Christen laughs, setting the dishes on the coffee table.

“A kiss would make me feel better,” Tobin pouts.

“I'm sure it would.” Christen leans down to kiss Tobin softly on the lips, but Tobin doesn't let it stop there, wrapping her arms around Christen’s neck and pulling her down for a deeper kiss. “Sneaky.”

“What?” Tobin whines as she pulls away.

“You invite me over when nobody’s home under the pretense of being so sore you can't lift a finger and then you make a move on me on your couch?” Christen teases. “If you wanted to make out with me, all you had to do was say so.”

“I want to do a lot more than make out with you, Christen Press,” Tobin rasps, struggling to sit up.

“Again, all you had to do was ask,” Christen says, her hand grazing Tobin’s knee.

Tobin can walk just fine all of a sudden when it comes to taking Christen into her room (after helping her put the food in the fridge, of course), but after a few minutes of fumbling around over her covers, Tobin feels the pain again.

“You're really sore, aren't you?” Christen asks breathlessly, pulling away after Tobin whimpers when moving her leg at a certain angle.

“I am, but I still want this.”

“So do I, but I want it to feel good for both of us,” Christen says. “Hang on, I'm going to the bathroom. Get undressed.”

“That's the least sexy thing I've ever heard,” Tobin grumbles.

“I'm serious, lay on your tummy. I want to give you a massage.”

“Tummy?” Tobin laughs, but she pulls her T-shirt over her head anyway, making Christen’s mouth literally water.

“Don't act like you're too cool for the word tummy,” Christen says when she finally recovers. “If you're too cool for my two-year-old niece, that might be a dealbreaker, because she's the coolest.”

“You have a niece?”

“I'll tell you all about her when you're naked,” Christen says. “Wait. That didn't come out right.” 

She turns bright red and finally remembers her plan to go into the bathroom and find lotion for a massage. She comes up dry in Tobin’s barren cupboards, but she does even better when she goes to the kitchen and rummages through the pantry and finds coconut oil.

“You're in luck!” Christen announces, and Tobin picks up her head. She's lying facedown completely naked on the bed, and Christen blushes as her eyes travel over Tobin’s body, smartly covered with a towel. “Look how chaste,” she teases.

“We have massage oil?” Tobin asks when she sees Christen pouring something from a bowl into her hand and setting a jar on her bedside table.

“Close,” Christen says, rubbing her hands together. “Coconut oil, which is even better because it's really good for your skin. And mine too, I guess.”

“Always an ulterior motive,” Tobin says before her words get lost in a moan when the warm oil hits her back.

“Yeah, this is totally all for me,” Christen laughs as she digs the heels of her hands into Tobin’s shoulder blades. “Breathe. They don't have to be deep breaths, just slow and steady. It'll make this way more enjoyable.”

“It can get better?” Tobin asks.

“Shh, don't talk,” Christen whispers. “Just breathe.”

“Tell me about your niece.”

“She's two,” Christen says. “My older sister got married and had her about a year later. Her name is Rain, and I love her a lot.”

“So you're Aunt Christen?”

“Aunt Chris or Chrissy,” she corrects.

“Do you miss her?”

“So much,” Christen sighs. “I'm planning a trip home soon to see her and hopefully bring my dogs back.”

Tobin smiles. Christen loves her dogs so much that she isn't sure how Julie ever convinced her to move without them.

As she massages, lathering Tobin’s back with coconut oil and digging her fingers deep into Tobin’s aching muscles, she speaks softly about her family and growing up with two sisters. She mindlessly moves to Tobin’s legs, making her gasp.

“Fuck,” Tobin hisses.

“Too much?” Christen asks, easing up on her pressure.

“No, I just…” Tobin tries, but just gasps again. “It feels good, but I really need you to stop talking about your family when you're touching me there.”

Christen blushes, but she doesn't move her hands. “Yeah?” she asks. “Are you getting worked up?”

“Christen…” Tobin warns as Christen moves her fingers higher, sneaking under the towel adorning her backside.

“Can I?” Christen asks, and Tobin nods as she takes the towel away, massaging the taut skin underneath.

“It's not as nice as yours,” Tobin mumbles.

“Very few are,” Christen jokes. “I like it. Does this feel good?”

“So good,” Tobin groans, only now realizing how tight her glutes are from that yoga class. No wonder Christen’s ass is so firm.

Christen climbs onto the bed and nudges a knee in between Tobin’s thighs, spreading her legs wider. She brushes Tobin’s hair out of the way and kisses her neck softly before leaving small pecks and bites down her spine, tasting the mix of coconut and salt on Tobin’s skin.

“You taste like summer,” Christen says in Tobin’s ear, trailing her fingers over her right hip, down the outside of her thigh, and back up the inside of her thigh before stopping just before she can get too close.

“Please,” Tobin chokes out. “Please touch me.”

“You learned to ask,” Christen teases, sucking on Tobin’s neck as she finally touches her. She murmurs her appreciation when she feels how soaked Tobin is. “God, how long did that massage have you like this?”

“From the moment you said you were going to give me one,” Tobin answers, every nerve ending on fire.

“Naughty,” Christen tuts, dipping the tip of her index finger shallowly into Tobin.

Tobin whimpers, pushing back against Christen, who slips her finger in easily. “I can't believe you're still dressed,” she manages to say. “This is so unfair.”

“You're the one getting fucked,” Christen retorts, her breath hot in Tobin’s ear as she slips another finger in, twisting them to change her angle, allowing her thumb to press against Tobin’s clit.

“Fuck,” Tobin whimpers. “I'm close.”

“I can tell,” Christen says, kissing just behind her ear. “You almost came with me just massaging your thighs.”

“Yeah and talking with that sexy whisper voice you do,” Tobin whines, her muscles contracting wildly around Christen’s fingers. “Right there. Fuck, Chris, please.”

Christen takes her free hand and reaches around Tobin’s body, cupping the slight curve of her breast and tweaking her nipple as Tobin comes with a shudder and a loud, final moan followed by quieter whimpers.

“I think that's the best massage I've ever given,” Christen murmurs, kissing Tobin’s shoulder once more before climbing off her and lying on the bed facing her, rubbing her still-oily back.

“I think it's the best one I've ever gotten,” Tobin groans, rolling over to face Christen. “I don't even care how oily my comforter is going to get.”

“Good,” Christen says, kissing Tobin on the lips finally.

“Hi,” Tobin says, smiling under heavy eyelids.

“Hi. Sleepy?”

“Just trying to stay in this dream.”

“Someone very wise once told me you can't live in a dream,” Christen says softly, her fingers tracing Tobin’s jawline.

“She didn't know you yet.”

~

The text catches Tobin completely off guard in the middle of work. Christen doesn't text her often while she's working, aside from little observations and funny stories throughout the day, but Tobin finds herself looking at her phone more and more often, hoping to have the chance to talk to her.

“I'm on the phone with my parents. Can I call you my girlfriend?”

Tobin has imagined this conversation going a number of different ways, but in every scenario she dreamt up, she was the one to bring it up while Christen made her endure a painful silence while she deliberated before finally saying yes. Or worse, saying no.

This is considerably less stressful, but then Tobin realizes she's been staring at her phone for a minute and Christen can see she read her text, so now she's putting her through the same painful silence.

“Yes! Of course,” Tobin texts back, cheeks warm as she grins at her phone.

“Yay :) I know this is a super lame way to do it but I was telling them about life and it felt weird not mentioning you because I wasn't sure how to explain.”

“All good,” Tobin responds. “I'll call you after work. Hope you're having a good day.”

“Better now!” Christen replies.

“Who's got you all smiley?” Ashlyn asks, approaching Tobin’s desk.

“You get two guesses, and the second doesn't count.”

Ashlyn smiles. “Laid looks good on you.”

“How did you know?”

“I was being optimistic for your celibate ass’ sake. It's about damn time.”

“She's my girlfriend,” Tobin says, unable to control the smile that spreads across her face.

“Officially?”

“Officially,” Tobin confirms. “Shit, does that make this our anniversary?”

“Figure that out with her as soon as possible,” Ashlyn warns. “My first fight with Ali was when I didn't remember the anniversary of our first kiss.”

“I'm sure it was that and not the fact that you left your cup in the cup holder of her car for the millionth time.”

“You guys have to stop hanging out without me,” Ashlyn says. “Trivia tonight?”

“I'm down,” Tobin says. “I think CP is coming.”

“Does Alex know?”

“Does Alex need to know in advance?” Tobin asks, even though she knows the answer to that question, and Ashlyn’s face shows she does too. “No, but Kelley’s coming, so she should be in a good mood.”

“Should being the operative word.”

~

Alex actually is in a good mood when they get to trivia, and it probably is because of the way Kelley kisses her on the cheek and holds her hand in public. When she does that, it usually means she's not interested in going home with anyone but Alex, though it doesn't stop her from flirting with the waitress.

When Tobin asks for a table for six, Alex shoots her a look, but at least she isn't completely floored when Christen shows up.

“Kel, this is my girlfriend, Christen,” Tobin says, beaming.

“It's so nice to meet you,” Kelley says, standing to hug her. “I've heard nothing but amazing things.”

Christen slides into the booth next to Ali, and Tobin sits on her other side, putting a hand on her knee.

Kelley and Christen make the typical “so, what brings you to Portland?” conversation while the other girls talk like normal until every head turns when Kelley exclaims “no way!”

“What?” Alex asks, whipping her head around.

“Christen went to Stanford!” Kelley says excitedly. “She graduated a year after I did, how wild is that?”

“Wild,” Alex agrees, but she doesn't seem impressed.

Tobin is pleased to see Kelley and Christen bonding, but as the night goes on and trivia begins, she can see Alex growing increasingly annoyed. She does her best to get Alex involved in the conversation, but aside from throwing in some half-hearted guesses as answers to trivia question, she shuts off.

“Hey,” Christen whispers to Tobin as the game winds down. With all their powers combined, they've slaughtered the competition, not that there's much tonight. “Do you want to come home with me?”

Tobin looks at her, eyes wide in surprise. “Um, yeah!” she says. “I mean, maybe we should go to mine though? I have to get stuff to wear for work tomorrow. Or we could stop by mine and pick stuff up and then go back to yours?”

“Whatever works,” Christen says. “I don't have any classes tomorrow, but I also don't have a roommate tonight.”

“I've gotta tell you, CP,” Kelley says, adopting the nickname quickly. “You're quite the catch. I'm happy for Tobin, but I'm kind of pissed she got to you first. If things don't work out, though…”

Christen blushes. “That's very sweet of you,” she says. “I'll keep that in mind. But I don't need Alex to hate me more than she already does.” It's meant to be a joke, and the rest of the girls laugh, but Alex’s face turns bright red and her blood boils under the surface.

“No worries, that's probably not possible,” Alex fires back.

“Alex!” Ashlyn exclaims, turning toward her, eyes wide with surprise. Christen looks shell-shocked.

“I'm joking,” Alex insists, rolling her eyes. “She can dish it out, but she can't take it.”

“I wasn't trying to dish out anything,” Christen says. “Sorry.”

“You're fine,” Kelley says. “Our Alex gets a little sensitive sometimes. Might be that time of the month.” She smirks, tossing an arm around Alex’s shoulder, and Alex clenches her jaw, shrugging away from her.

“Enough, you guys,” Tobin says. “Christen wasn't trying to be mean, and Alex isn't PMSing. Relax.”

“My bad, my bad,” Kelley says. “Just trying to lighten the mood. Should I get us an Uber back?”

“Yeah,” Alex says softly, not arguing against Kelley coming back to the apartment, which doesn't come as a shock to anyone. She's always quick to forgive when it comes to her.

“Christen’s coming too,” Tobin says. She doesn't need Alex’s permission, of course, but she figures it's best to at least set proper expectations.

“It's cool,” Alex says. “She's your girlfriend.”

The ride home is as awkward as you'd expect. Alex sits up front, arms crossed as she looks out the window, and the only noise from the back comes from the tiniest kiss Christen places on Tobin’s cheek halfway through.

Back at the apartment, Christen follows Tobin to her room, eager to get away from Alex while she and Kelley search for something in the fridge to snack on.

“I like Kelley,” Christen says, sitting on the end of Tobin’s bed as she rummages through her closet. “I feel bad for Alex, though. I can tell it bothered her when she was talking to me.”

“I mean, she was flirting with you,” Tobin says. “Nothing serious, but Kelley flirts with everyone, which is a huge part of why Alex is so insecure with her.”

“Insecure is not the word I'd pick for her,” Christen laughs.

“You can be the most confident, outgoing, beautiful woman in the world, and all it takes is one person who doesn't treat you that way to change you,” Tobin says. “It sucks, but she puts more stock into what Kelley thinks than anything else.”

“Is Kelley mean to her?”

“She's not mean, at least not on purpose,” Tobin says. “She does think Alex is beautiful, and on some level she loves her and cares for her, but of course Alex doesn't feel that way when Kelley’s sleeping with her boss half the time and random girls and old flames the other half.”

“Her boss?” Christen exclaims, quickly covering her mouth with her hand when she remembers they're right outside.

“It's complicated,” Tobin says. “When she first moved to the area, she met this… woman at a bar. A little older, but Kelley’s into that sort of thing, I guess. They had sex, and a week later she went in for an interview to be the personal assistant for one of the execs at Nike. Guess who?”

“Oh my God,” Christen gasps. “That's right out of a movie. Or like, if The Devil Wears Prada were gay.”

“Basically,” Tobin says. “Needless to say, she got the job, and in turn got mixed up in all sorts of things she probably shouldn't be. I think Alex is something stable and healthy and normal in the midst of all her madness.”

“Not very healthy for Alex, though.”

“No,” Tobin agrees, but she's distracted from what she's about to say when she hears Alex’s voice raise in the living room.

“I waited for you!” Alex exclaims, her voice getting higher as it cracks. “And all it’s done is fuck me over.”

“I never asked you to do that!” Kelley explodes back. 

“Shit,” Christen whispers. “What do we do?”

Tobin shakes her head, squinting her eyes as if it'll help her hear what's going on on the other side of the door, as their voices have gotten lower again. It's obvious they're still fighting, but she can't quite make out what they're saying.

“Tobin!”

“Sorry,” Tobin replies. “Um, should we just go?”

“I am not walking through that!”

“You're right,” Tobin says. “Okay, we’ll wait. They can't fight for that long, it's already like 10:30, they'll have to go to bed eventually.”

They wait, and wait, and then they wait some more. Tobin isn't sure when they stop fighting, but it's sometime between when she falls asleep with Christen’s arms around her waist and head on her chest and when her alarm gently wakes her the next morning.

Tobin groans when she realizes she and Christen clearly never executed their big girlfriend plans for the night, especially because they're still unevenly balanced in their relationship in terms of orgasms, and Tobin had been planning on making up for it.

“Hey, beautiful,” she whispers when she feels Christen stirring. “I should go make sure the tornado that blew through last night didn't leave any damage.”

“Okay,” Christen says sleepily, nodding while Tobin extracts herself from her grip.

The only evidence that anything went down last night is the half empty bowl of cereal (with water) that must have been abandoned by Kelley when they started arguing. Nobody ever finished it or put it away, and Kelley’s shoes and purse aren't in the common area, which Tobin takes to mean that Kelley left eventually.

“Al?” Tobin calls, knocking on Alex’s bedroom door. She can't hear her shower, and considering they usually wake up at the same time and Alex has a strict morning routine, that raises an alarm. “Alex, are you up?” She opens the door to find Alex still in bed, covers over her head.

“I'm not going to work,” Alex says. “I'm sick.”

“What happened?” Tobin asks softly, sitting on the bed beside her.

“I ended it,” Alex says, her voice raspier than usual, and Tobin recognizes the voice of someone who cried herself to sleep. “I'm done.”

“Oh, Ali,” Tobin sighs, using the nickname usually reserved for Alex’s family.

Alex sniffles from under the covers, and she pokes her head out so Tobin can see her smeared makeup and red, puffy face. “She never loved me.”

Tobin wants to cry when she sees her best friend like this, but there's nothing she can do. She wants to tell Alex she was right to end it, but that won't do much when she's this heartbroken. Part of her always hoped Kelley would get her head out of her ass for long enough to realize she really did love Alex before something like this happened.

“I'm sorry, Lex,” she tries instead. “I know it hurts.”

“I told her I was done being treated like this, and she… she just left,” Alex sobs. “Well, we argued first. A lot. And eventually she just left. Like she doesn't even care. She took all the clothes she left in my drawer and just walked out.”

“I'm sure she cares,” Tobin says. “Maybe not just in the same way.”

Alex breaks down in tears, burying her face in the pillow. “I'm not going to work.”

“You don't have to,” Tobin says. “You can take a day off. You're hurting. I'll stay too if you want.”

“You can't do that,” Alex protests.

“Of course I can,” Tobin says. “Go back to sleep. I'll be here when you wake up, and we can take a mental health day. We can do anything you want or nothing at all.”

“Are you sure?” Alex asks, voice timid.

“One hundred percent,” Tobin promises, standing up to leave. “And Alex? I'm proud of you. I know how hard that was.”

“I'm proud of me too,” Alex says softly.

~

Alex wakes up a few hours later to the smell of coffee and the sound of someone tinkering around in the kitchen. After washing her face of the makeup and moisturizing because the salty tears made her face dry, she emerges from her room.

And almost turns right back around when she sees Christen.

“Did I wake you?” she asks softly. “I'm so sorry, I was trying to be quiet.”

“You didn't,” Alex says. “I didn't realize you were still here.”

“I'm leaving, I promise,” Christen says. “I just can't function in the mornings without breakfast, so I was making myself an omelet.”

“I'm the same,” Alex says.

“Want one?” Christen offers, pouring a mug of coffee for Alex and sliding it toward her.

“Um, yeah, actually,” Alex says. “Thanks.”

Christen visibly brightens, thrilled to have the opportunity to do something nice for Alex.

“Perfect,” Christen says, gathering all the ingredients.

Alex watches her navigate the kitchen a little too familiarly for someone who doesn't live there before she seems to be stumped. “Need help?”

“Oh, no, I remember!” Christen exclaims, running to Tobin’s room and emerging with a jar of coconut oil.

“Um, what was my coconut oil doing in there?” Alex asks, raising an eyebrow.

There are so many uses for the stuff, all of which Christen knows, so she should be able to come up with any number of reasons, but she can't stop her face from turning beet red.

“Okay, ew, you owe me another jar,” Alex says with a grimace.

“It's not like that!” Christen insists, but her face gives her away.

“I don't want to know.”

Christen prepares the omelets (which she cooks in coconut oil) while Alex sips her coffee in silence, both looking at one another every few seconds, looking away as soon as the other makes eye contact.

“Thanks,” Alex says when Christen serves her the omelet along with a side bowl of sliced fruit. “You're kind of Stepford freaky, aren't you?”

“I'll take that as a compliment,” Christen laughs, cutting into her omelet and taking a bite. “I like cooking. I like food in general, I just think it's so cool how different you feel based on what you eat. That's why I do what I do.”

“Which is what again?” Alex asks. “Sorry.”

“It's okay,” Christen says, smiling. She kind of knew Alex wasn't listening the previous times she’d talked about it, but the fact that she's actually asking means the world to her. “I'm a wellness counselor. At the gym I teach yoga and set people up on nutrition plans to go along with their personal training if they're interested.”

“You know how much fast food Tobin eats, right?”

“I do,” Christen laughs. “That girl’s metabolism is absolutely insane.”

“I know, right?” Alex exclaims. “If I so much as think about a French fry, I'll get another cellulite wrinkle in my thigh.”

“I doubt that very much,” Christen says.

“I swear,” Alex insists, raising her hand like she's taking an oath. “Please look, it's awful.” She stands up and lifts the shorts she wore to bed, pointing to the imaginary cellulite at the tops of her thighs while Christen squints, trying to see what the hell Alex thinks she's showing her.

“Whoa, what's going on here?” Tobin asks, walking into the kitchen with freshly washed hair.

“Alex is showing me her make-believe cellulite,” Christen laughs, greeting Tobin with a kiss. “You brushed your teeth.”

“Just for you,” Tobin says. “Who do I have to sleep with around here for one of these omelets?”

“Me,” Christen says. “So better luck next time.”

“This is really good, thanks Christen,” Alex says.

“Of course,” Christen replies, beaming.

“What are your plans today?” Tobin asks.

“I was going to leave after you finished showering,” Christen says. “But I'll make you breakfast first. And I'll see you sometime this weekend?”

“Of course,” Tobin agrees.

“You could stick around,” Alex offers. “I don't need a babysitter.”

“I'm not babysitting, I just want to hang out with you,” Tobin protests. 

“I'm going to go run or do something to get my mind off all… this.”

“I'll go!” Tobin insists.

“You hate running,” Alex says, calling her bluff. “I need to be alone, Tobs. You have fun with your girlfriend. Earn that omelet.” She gets up to bring her plate to the sink and winks at Christen, whose cheeks turn pink. “Oh, but leave my coconut oil out of it this time.”

~

The next time Christen sees Alex is surprisingly not at her apartment, but at work when she walks in to sign up for a membership and personal training.

Alex looks slightly embarrassed when she realizes it's going to be Christen to do her consultation, including taking measurements and setting goals for her training.

“I guess I don't want to lose weight or get thinner, like I know I'm in good shape, I'm just not fit,” Alex says, fiddling with the water bottle Christen gave her. “And that thing you said last week about how food can affect your body so much really stuck with me, and I just think it's time for a change.”

“Okay,” Christen says, nodding. “I can definitely help with that.” She clears her throat, knowing she has to ask Alex the same questions she’d ask anyone else during a consultation even if she already knows the answer. “What, um, what spurred you on to make a change like this?”

Alex laughs wryly. “I have a feeling you know.”

“I have to ask,” Christen says quietly.

“I ended a relationship that was not good for me or for the other person,” Alex says. “Happy?” Christen is quiet as Alex’s lip starts to tremble. “I'm sorry, I'm fine.” She takes a long sip from her water bottle.

“Well, we’re all about health inside and out here,” Christen says. “Mental and emotional health is just as important as physical health. In fact, they're really hard to separate.”

“Good. So, how do we get started?”

“Depending on your schedule, we can get you set up with an initial training session. You're welcome to try out different trainers, but would you feel more comfortable with a man or a woman?”

“Um, I guess it doesn't matter really,” Alex says. “I like both.” She blushes. “I mean—whatever. I don't care.”

“Okay,” Christen laughs. “And when it comes to workouts, do you prefer indoors or outdoors? Do you like structure or a little more freedom?”

“Outdoors and I guess a little more freedom,” Alex says. “But they can't go easy on me. I played a lot of sports growing up, so I like that kind of structure.”

“Cool,” Christen says. “We’re trying to get involved in some adult sports leagues around here, so we’ll keep you in the loop.”

“Awesome.”

“When do you prefer to work out? Mornings, afternoons, weekends?”

“I guess I'd like to try mornings, but it would have to be really early before work. And weekends of course.”

“Okay,” Christen says, typing some things into her computer as she examines the schedule. “We have one more opening tomorrow morning at 6 a.m. Would that be okay for your initial training?”

“Sure,” Alex says, nodding. “As long as my roommate and her girlfriend don't keep me up.”

Christen smiles. “I'll make sure to pass along the memo.”

“So, all set?”

“All set,” Christen says. “You'll be with Servando, and his number will be in the packet you'll pick up at the front. Thanks for your business, and I'm really excited for you and this journey.”

“Thanks, Christen,” Alex says, standing up. “Listen, I know I wasn't the best to you—”

“Don't worry about it.”

“No, I am,” Alex says. “You make Tobin happy, and I'm happy she found you. I'm sorry for how I acted. It was childish.”

“Thank you,” Christen says. “That really does mean a lot.”

“I promise you, though, if you break her heart, I take it all back.”

Christen smirks. “I'd expect nothing less.”

~

To say Alex and Kelley’s “breakup” changed the dynamic of their group of friends would be a gross understatement. Both Alex and Kelley refused to come to Sunday brunch, assuming incorrectly that the other would be there, so it turns into a weekly double date with Christen, Tobin, Ali, and Ashlyn, where the majority of their conversation circles around how to Parent Trap the two back together—or at least into the same room, considering nobody really wants them to be together again.

“We should tell them Tobin was in a terrible accident,” Ashlyn says. “Not like fatal, but maybe she's tragically disfigured. They'd have to come running to the hospital.”

“Your mind works in disturbing ways,” Ali says. “I don't see why we don't just have a dinner party. We don't have to mention the other, but we don't have to lie.”

“That's going to be the first thing they ask,” Christen says. “I'll use this as my reminder to never get involved with a friend.”

“Rude,” Tobin says. “What am I?”

“The girl who I flirted with because I knew it would get under her bitchy friend’s skin and eventually fell for,” Christen teases.

“What?” Tobin asks, turning her head in confusion. “You were doing it to piss off Alex?”

“I mean, I also thought you were cute,” Christen says. “But I'd be lying if I said that weren’t a somewhat important factor. I've never given someone my number in a bar before.”

Tobin turns back to her pancakes, trying not to be annoyed but failing miserably as the other women go back to plotting about Kelley and Alex.

It turns out not to matter much in the end, because Kelley ends up setting herself up for the perfect “accidental” reunion when she comes to the gym looking for Christen.

“Hey!” Christen says, surprised to see her after Alyssa came back to tell her some brunette girl with a bunch of freckles was here for her. “Can I help you?”

“I hope so,” Kelley says. “Can we talk in private?”

“Um, sure, come on back,” Christen says. “Water?”

“I'm okay,” Kelley says, taking a seat in her office. “So I really tried not to do this, because I don't know you that well and don't want to put you in a weird situation—”

“Hey, slow down,” Christen says softly. “What's up?”

“I need a job,” Kelley says.

“Oh,” Christen realizes, raising her eyebrows. “Have you—is this—”

“Of course Tobin told you,” she laughs. “It's fine, I just think it's time for me to move onto something different. A job where I'm not sleeping with my boss.”

“Right,” Christen says slowly. “But are you still…”

“Sleeping with Silvia? No,” Kelley says. “Her husband—they were separated, I'm not a home wrecker—is back in the picture, so I bowed out. Well, that and Alex.”

“Alex?”

“I love her,” Kelley says with a shrug, like it's casual and not something Alex herself has been waiting a year to hear. “She won't talk to me now, but I knew I needed to call things off with Silvia before I could make things right with Alex. And I know she won't take me seriously till I'm not working for her anymore. Hence why I'm here.”

“Because you want a job,” Christen clarifies, trying to follow.

“I'm really organized and responsible, and I work really well with people,” Kelley says. “I'd be an awesome barista, but too much caffeine would be bad news for me. Tobin said you guys might be hiring, so I thought I'd give it a shot.”

“Let me talk to JJ and Zach,” Christen says. “I can't promise anything, but—”

“Of course!” Kelley exclaims. “I'm not asking for a gimme. I'll sweep floors, scrub toilets if I have to.”

“We kind of all do that,” Christen laughs. “It's a team effort. But good to know.”

She texts Tobin as soon as Kelley leaves, asking what she should do. “Idk, give her a job?” is the (not very helpful) response, so Christen takes matters into her own hands, texting Ashlyn for more insight. From there, they hatch a plan. It’s going to require patience and a little bit of luck, but Christen is confident they’ll pull it off.

~

Alex almost ruins it right off the bat. Christen had carefully scheduled Kelley’s shifts to occur at times when Alex isn’t typically in the gym, but on Kelley’s very first day, Alex reschedules her morning training to the afternoon, citing a hangover. Luckily, Servando comes through, arranging to meet Alex at the park instead of the gym. He doesn’t question the role he has to play in the long con, mostly because he doesn’t know the complicated back story, just that he likes Christen and Kelley and Alex.

Meanwhile, Ashlyn checks in with Alex every now and then to make sure they're doing the right thing. They figured it would be best to leave Tobin out of it, that way if it backfires she won't be implicated between two of her best friends.

“Breakthrough!” Ashlyn texts Christen one day after lunch with Alex. “She said she doesn't hate Kelley. She actually said she thinks she and Kelley would have ended up together in any other situation.”

“Meaning???”

“Idk, maybe she was planning on killing off Silvia. But that sounds good, right?”

“I don't know, we still need to give it a few weeks,” Christen says. “I'll get Serv to lay some groundwork.”

She knows this is risky, and she knows if it goes wrong Tobin might never forgive her, but she also can't stand seeing her girlfriend so upset about her best friends refusing to be in the same room together.

The plan finally comes to fruition three weeks after Kelley starts working at the gym and Serv starts telling Alex about the girl he wants to set her up with. As expected, she declines the first several times, telling Servando (vaguely) that she’s not ready to jump into anything quite yet. She finally expresses interest in the middle of a workout in the park, according to Serv, who was not at all prepared for her sudden curiosity.

“I told her I can’t tell her the name because it’s bad luck for a blind date,” he says, his voice hushed behind Christen’s door.

“Way to think on your feet,” Christen says. “Don’t worry about it. Just keep her interest.” Her heart almost jumps out of her chest when Kelley opens the door to her office. “What?”

“Sorry,” Kelley says, taken aback by her uncharacteristic outburst. “Bridget is here for training.”

“Thanks,” Serv says, walking out to greet his client. Kelley turns to follow him, but Christen stops her.

“Kel, wait,” Christen says. “Can you come in? Close the door.”

“Am I getting fired?” Kelley asks, her face frozen in terror.

“No, of course not,” Christen says. “I just want to talk to you about something.”

“Shoot.”

“About Alex.”

Kelley sighs. “Alex.”

“How are you feeling? I know when you started the job you were really hoping to try things with her again, but as far as I can tell, nothing’s really happened. Have you talked to her?”

“I’ve thought about it,” Kelley says. “I’m scared she’ll ignore me. Or tell me exactly how she feels about me. I’m not sure which one would be worse.”

“So what’s your plan?”

“I don’t really have one,” Kelley admits.

“But just say you figured out… how to go about it. What would your plan be? To pursue a relationship?”

“I guess,” Kelley says. “First I’d have to earn back her trust. Then I’d do whatever she wanted. I’d marry her. Do you know how insane that is for me to say?”

Christen does know based on the things Tobin has told her about Kelley, so she nods.

“I want to be with her,” Kelley continues. “And I feel like such a fucking idiot for not realizing it till it was too late. It's so cliche, but as soon as I left that night, I regretted it. Before that moment sitting in my car in the parking lot, I was sure that she didn't mean that much to me. I mean, I knew I liked hanging out with her and all that stuff, but I didn't know that I actually felt as much as I do.”

“Why didn't you come back then?”

“Pride, I guess,” Kelley says. “But part of me knew if I turned around and told her I wanted to be with her, she’d take me back and I would crush her if I wasn't sure.”

“But now you're sure.”

“Yeah.”

“So what if I could get you a date with her?”

“What?”

“One date,” Christen says. “A chance for you to talk one-on-one and figure out if maybe it's something you want to try again. And if it's not, a chance to get closure so you don't have to avoid each other like you have been.”

“She said she wants that?”

“Well, not exactly,” Christen says slowly. “But if she did… would you be open to it?”

“Yeah,” Kelley says. “Of course.”

Christen breaks down the plot, and after a few refusals and “what if” scenarios, Kelley finally agrees, setting the next phase of the plan into action.

~

Christen takes the weekend off to go home for a friend’s birthday party and the chance to introduce Tobin to her family, assuming nothing too monumental could happen in just one three-day weekend, but she realizes she's wrong as soon as she gets a text from Serv after his morning session with Alex, at which point she and Tobin are already in their seats on the plane.

“Alex asked me to set her up!” he says. “She and Kelley are going out tomorrow night.”

“What's up?” Tobin asks, and Christen realizes her face must look panicked.

“Oh, uh, nothing,” Christen says, powering down her phone. “I just couldn't remember if I brought the bra that goes with the dress I'm wearing tomorrow night.”

“If not, you could just not wear one,” Tobin suggests, smirking.

When they land, Tobin gets the other side of the story.

“Holy shit,” she says, following Christen off the plane. “Alex is going on a blind date tomorrow night.”

“Oh, wow,” Christen says, failing miserably at sounding surprised. “With who?”

“It's a blind date, I doubt we know her,” Tobin says. “Wait, she said it’s someone Servando knows from the gym. And it's a she. Who else works there? Julie and Alyssa and Morgan are straight.”

Christen stares at the floor in front of her as they walk through the terminal.

“Seriously, who else works there besides you and Kelley and all the guys?” Tobin wonders aloud. Christen can practically hear the wheels in her head stop turning when she figures it out. “Oh my God.”

“Tobin—”

“He didn't know!” Tobin exclaims. “Oh shit, I have to warn her.”

“Tobin, no!” Christen shouts, grabbing her phone away. 

Tobin looks at Christen’s hand, baffled by her actions before realizing how guilty she looks. “You didn't.”

“Hear me out.”

“No!” Tobin exclaims. “What the hell? You’ve seen how upset Alex has been for the last few weeks. I know you aren't her biggest fan, but this is cruel.”

“What?” Christen replies. “We didn't do this to be mean!”

“Who's we?” Tobin asks. Christen is silent in reply. “Christen.”

“I plead the fifth.”

“Ashlyn,” Tobin sighs. “Fucking Ashlyn.”

“It was my idea too,” Christen says.

“I know,” Tobin says. “You're definitely not off the hook. How could you think this was a good idea?”

“Because they love each other!”

“This isn't a Reese Witherspoon movie,” Tobin says. “These are real people with real feelings who have been through a lot lately. What if Alex is finally ready to move on? Do you know what this will do to her?”

“Give her the chance to talk to the person she loves and hear that she loves her back?”

“In your fantasy world,” Tobin sighs. 

Christen looks up when she hears a horn honking, and smiles when she sees her sister’s car. “That's Tyler.”

“Great,” Tobin says, picking up her bag and walking toward the car, leaving Christen to carry her own.

Luckily, the presence of her niece and her sister takes any potential awkwardness out of the car ride home, but Christen can think of plenty of more desirable circumstances under which she’d rather Tobin meet her family.

They're staying at Christen’s parents’ house, and their arrival is madness, full of cheek kisses and tight hugs and squeals, but Christen can tell Tobin isn't happy with her by the way she keeps her distance and avoids eye contact.

“Please don't give me the cold shoulder,” Christen says when they get up to her old room to set their bags down.

“I'm not,” Tobin says. “I want to enjoy our weekend, but I'm really not happy with you.”

“I know.” Christen sits on the bed, waiting patiently while Tobin paces.

“They're my best friends.”

“I know.”

“Ashlyn should know better.”

“It wasn't just her.”

“So you've said.”

Christen pauses, wringing her hands. “I want them to work something out,” she says. “Like you said, they're your best friends. It kills me to see you torn between them.”

“I can handle it,” Tobin says, stopping in front of Christen. “Whatever comes out of this, I can handle that too. Please just promise you'll stay out of it from now on. I like you too much to give Alex more reasons to hate you. That would be way harder than being torn between Kelley and Alex.”

“I promise,” Christen agrees. She kneels on the bed and wraps her arms around Tobin’s neck, pulling her in for a kiss. “You aren't mad at me anymore?”

“You're too cute to stay mad at,” Tobin murmurs, kissing her again.

Christen melts into the kiss, pulling Tobin’s body into her own. “I love you.”

“I love you,” Tobin says, not even questioning it.

“Yeah?” Christen asks, biting her lip and grinning.

“Would I have put up with your cranky ass at 5 a.m. and let you sit in the window seat on the plane if I didn't?”

“I guess not,” Christen laughs, kissing her again. “My parents will be wondering what we’re doing.”

“They don't have to wonder,” Tobin teases, grabbing her waist in a way she knows will always make Christen squeal with surprise as she tosses her on the bed and peppers her neck with kisses while Christen giggles and squirms.

“I want to play!” Rain shrieks, pushing open the door.

Tobin practically leaps off the bed, and Christen sits up, laughing.

“Isn't it naptime?” Christen asks as Rain climbs onto the bed.

“Wanna nap with you,” the little girl replies, sticking her thumb in her mouth, always a tell-tale sign that she's ready for bed.

“I was going to show Tobin around town,” Christen says as Rain crawls under her arm and settles into her side. 

“It can wait,” Tobin says, smiling at the sight of the two of them. Press genes run strong, so it seems, so Rain being the spitting image of Tyler means she's also Christen’s mini-me.

“Let's nap,” Rain says, satisfied with the outcome as she snuggles under Christen’s covers, completely unmaking the bed.

“Yeah,” Christen agrees, looking up at Tobin and gesturing her back to the bed. “Let's nap.”

~

Christen can hardly focus on any of the conversations she's having with old friends at the party Saturday night, and it's not because of the way Tobin’s fingers are mindlessly rubbing circles over her exposed back.

“Shouldn't we have heard by now?” she whispers to Tobin.

“Maybe it's a good thing we haven't,” Tobin says.

Christen nods, but she isn't convinced. The date was supposed to start at 8, but she figures Alex was probably running at least 15 minutes late. It's only 9 now, but she keeps checking her phone, expecting to see a 10-minute voicemail from Alex screaming at her, but instead, it's radio silence.

The last time Tobin heard from Alex was around 7, when she was second-guessing her outfit for at least the sixth time.

“I need it to make her want to fuck me but not suggest I'll put out on the first date.”

“But you do put out on the first date,” Tobin had reminded her dryly.

“Yeah, but she can't know that right off the bat!”

Tobin had rolled her eyes at Alex at the time, but now she wishes she’d call or text or send smoke signals—anything so Tobin would know she’s alright and isn’t in the process of moving out because she thinks Tobin is somehow involved in this scheme.

As if Alex can read her mind, Tobin’s phone lights up with her face, and Christen raises her eyebrows expectantly.

“Hey, Al,” Tobin says, bringing the phone to her ear. “H-hang on, it’s kind of loud in here, let me go outside.”

Christen stays put, trying to make polite conversation with a boy who had a crush on her in middle school (and actually grew up to be pretty cute) who takes Tobin’s place beside her, but her heart is racing, her palms sweaty as she wrings her hands, waiting for the verdict. She keeps glancing toward the sliding glass door, where she can see Tobin pacing back and forth as she talks on the phone intently.

She stands up as soon as she sees Tobin hang up and walk back inside, apologizing to the boy when she bumps his knee with her own. He seems just fine with it, though.

“Can we talk for a sec?” Tobin asks, nodding toward the front door instead of the sliding glass door, where a lot of party-goers are hanging out.

“Yeah,” Christen says, her stomach sinking. Tobin puts a hand on her lower back as she leads her toward the door, which does little to soothe Christen.

People are still mingling in the front yard as well, the smoke in the air making Christen crinkle her nose and cough immediately, so they walk all the way to Tyler’s car, which Christen borrowed for the night.

“So,” Christen says, turning to face Tobin, but she doesn't even get to start a full thought or question before Tobin’s lips are on hers, her body pinning Christen against the car. “What was that for?”

“I'm still not happy you meddled,” Tobin says, kissing her quickly once more. “But I know why you did it, and I love you for it.”

“How did it go?”

“Probably not as fairytale as you'd hoped, but it worked,” Tobin says. “They actually talked about things, their feelings, what they want in the future, that kind of thing.”

“Does Alex hate me?”

“No,” Tobin says. “Not for this, anyway. I think it'll take some time, but I think they're really going to try to be together for real. And maybe it'll work.”

“Maybe it will,” Christen muses, a happy smile dancing across her lips.

“I'm kind of tired,” Tobin says. “Do you think we could head home?”

“Yeah,” Christen agrees, nodding. On another night she may have rolled her eyes because it's not even midnight, but she's just glad Tobin wants to be alone with her at this point because it could have ended so much worse. “Let's go in and say goodbye.”

Tobin nods, kissing Christen’s lips again and lingering there.

“You know, on second thought, screw it,” Christen says, unlocking the car and opening the backseat. Tobin raises an eyebrow. “Are you going to say no?”

“Not a chance,” Tobin laughs, following Christen into the car.

“Fuck!” Christen hisses when Tobin pushes her back directly into a car seat. She fumbles around with the seatbelt to unlock it, swearing under her breath till Tobin is laughing too much for the situation to even be a little sexy. “Okay, bad call,” Christen admits glumly.

“Hey, you're still cute,” Tobin laughs, taking her chin in her hand for a kiss. “I wasn't going to fuck you in your sister’s car anyway.”

Christen smiles, grateful that it's too dark for Tobin to see her cheeks redden, but she figures she can probably feel the heat.

“Come on, I'll drive,” Tobin says, backing herself out of the car and extending a hand to Christen to help her out as well.

“Thanks,” Christen says, practically racing Tobin when she sees that she's heading to the passenger door. Tobin wins, opening the door for Christen, who rolls her eyes but kisses Tobin as a thank you.

On the way home, Tobin tells Christen the story of the date the way Alex told it, even though she's pretty sure they're going to be hearing it for years (and probably telling it at their wedding).

“What you said before,” Christen says. “About how you know why I got involved? What did you mean?”

Tobin smiles. “It was just cute.”

“But you said you didn't like it and it wasn't my place.”

“It wasn't,” Tobin says. “But I was thinking about all the effort you had to make in order to make this happen, and I couldn't believe you'd do that for someone who has basically treated you like crap for months.”

“She's gotten better,” Christen says softly.

“But she didn't deserve that kind of kindness,” Tobin says. “But that's just who you are. And I'm really grateful for that.”

Christen kisses her hand because she can't kiss her on the face while driving. “Who would have thought I'd fall in love with one of the cheating bitches who kept shooting us dirty looks that first night at trivia?”

“Who would have thought you'd use me to get under Alex’s skin and end up playing me like a puppet and somehow making me fall in love with you?”

Christen smirks. “Oh, I totally could have called that.”

**Author's Note:**

> Comment/leave kudos/tell your friends if you like this, and maaaaybeeee there will be something else from this universe coming down the pipe eventually ;)


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